There are many different types of anchor windlasses. Mine has a 12-volt motor, a clutch for free- wheeling, a brake, and a manual-operation override. Yours may have just
one or more of these features. No matter
what kind you have, the info in this article will be helpful. My Lofrans Falcon
windlass has seen more than 18 years
of hard duty and has been used almost
every night in many conditions, including hurricanes, tropical storms, “storms
of the century,” and even a tornado.

Use a clean white towel to lay out
your parts in the order in which they
were removed. Try
to work on only one
feature at a time. The
towel should have
weights if there is
wind. Use containers
for the small parts,
or several containers corresponding to
the order of removal.

Containers should
be weighted down
so they won’t blow
away in wind gusts.

MaintainingYour TrustyWindlassTake good care of it, keep ittuned up, and this workhorsewill take good care ofyour back

2.1.

Disconnect electricity by turning off the
main breaker to the windlass or flipping
the main battery switch.

1Secure anchor to a cleat with chain hook or other means, leaving it free
from windlass and out of the way. Use
large nail or Phillips-head screwdriver to
prevent chain from feeding back down
chain hole.